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THE Farm Woodland and Forestry management area, is expanded this year to provide more scope for the programme of exhibits and demonstrations plus a wide range of specialist machines and equipment.
One of the principle sources of information and advice for producers – both current and potential – is the Forestry Commission, which will be covering both commercial and recreational aspects of woodlands. Staff from the Commission will also be available to discuss grant aid as well as the practical aspects of tree management.
Also included in the woodland and forestry area is a programme of demonstrations organised by the Forestry and Timber Association. They will put some of the latest machinery through its paces in a series of practical demonstrations showing planters, harvesters, chippers, tree movers and saw mills, and they will also show a range of options for woodland fencing.
Lumberjacks will feature in a display of traditional skills with an axe and a crosscut saw, with competing teams adding an element of excitement to the programme, and there will also be a competitive de-limbing display with a specially designed high-tech harvesting machine working in competition against the more familiar manual technique with a chainsaw.
Another unusual demonstration shows the centuries old cleft technique for splitting timber to make gates and fences. Richard Bower, the leading maker of traditional cleft gates, will show how split timber can be used instead of the usual sawn material to make products with natural strength, eye appeal and, he claims, a much longer life. The demonstration is at grid ref Q9.
Woodland management is the subject of a regional competition organised jointly by the RASE and the Royal Forestry Society of England, Wales and Northern Ireland. This years entries came from farms and estates in Hants, Glos, Wilts and the Isle of Wight, and they cover schemes as varied as a 100m shelter belt to large public woodlands. The competition was split into 14 classes to reward high standards of management in a wide range of situations.
Competition winners will receive their trophies and certificates on Tue, Jul 2 in the Lodge at the Farm Woodland and Forestry Area.